


Subtle

by Cinaed



Series: Disaster [2]
Category: CSI: Las Vegas
Genre: F/F, F/M, Femslash, Het, One Night Stands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-11-11
Updated: 2006-11-11
Packaged: 2017-10-07 23:14:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/70262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cinaed/pseuds/Cinaed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sofia Curtis is all subtlety.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Subtle

Wendy wants to laugh sometimes at how no one else seems to realize that Sara and Grissom are together. She's continually reminded of that saying about the frog and the boiling water. Maybe the whole Grissom and Sara relationship had been heating up for so long that no one noticed when the tipping point finally occurred. Perhaps it's only because Wendy is one of the newer faces around the crime lab that she noticed the shift from co-workers to-- lovers, she supposes, though thinking of lover and Grissom in the same context makes her head hurt. 

In the end, she's almost grateful. This way, while she's the slightest bit prone to bouts of melancholy in the weeks following her one-night stand with Sara, no one knows the reason behind her misery (although her fellow lab rats do try to drag it out of her time and time again). 

Wendy has all the time in the world to bury this ache in her chest and forget about how warm and solid Sara had felt next to her, to get over this silly crush and leap back into her old lifestyle of one-night stands with no strings attached. Still, she finds herself taking her time, giving the ill fated fling a proper burial and memorial. 

Then one day she glances into the hallway and sees one of the detectives watching Grissom and Sara with a gleam of understanding in her eyes, and realizes that she isn't the only one to know about Sara and Grissom's secret relationship. 

Wendy is still trying to remember the detective's name when the woman turns and catches her eye. There it is again, that flicker of understanding, of recognition, and then a slow, sideways smile forms on the detective's lips. The detective -- Curtis, Wendy finally remembers, well, hopes she remembers anyway -- gives her the smallest of nods and then continues on down the hallway as though nothing has happened. 

Wendy feels an odd mixture of relief and something akin to panic afterwards. After all, even if Detective Curtis knows of Sara and Grissom's relationship, there's no possible way for her to have an inkling that Sara and Wendy once slept together. Nor will the detective tell Ecklie and get either of the CSIs fired. After the initial flare of panic, the euphoric relief becomes more powerful. Finally, _finally_ someone else sees it. 

She finds herself watching this Detective Curtis -- Sofia Curtis, Wendy is informed by Archie (who also lets slip that Detective Curtis nursed a crush on Grissom a while back). Maybe Detective Curtis' old crush on Grissom is why she too realized when Sara and Grissom finally got together. 

Wendy looks at Detective Curtis and sees her in all her subtlety, with the smallest of ironic smiles which grace her slightly crooked mouth and the elegant way her eyebrow lifts when someone does something stupid or interesting. And then there is the accent, which Wendy can't quite place, no matter how much she concentrates during the rare moment when she's in hearing distance of that soft, deadpan drawl. 

And then the day comes when Detective Curtis looks back, and that ironic smile and subtle eyebrow are directed at Wendy and Wendy alone. "Simms, right? DNA?" 

"That's me, Wendy Simms," she says with a smile, and extends her hand. Curtis' grip is firm and confident. They've met before, of course, but only for hurried moments where Wendy offers up the DNA analysis results so that the detective can nail the criminals. Besides, Brass is the rarest of detectives, who is so close to the CSIs, and not even _his_relationship with the crime lab really extends to the lab rats. "Detective Curtis?" 

"Sofia." Her smile turns even more crooked, and Sofia continues, "The diner down the street. I was wondering if you wanted to grab a bite to eat after shift." 

Wendy is surprised, of course, because they are not friends, have barely said a handful of sentences to each other since Wendy first arrived in Vegas, but after a moment of hesitation, she finds herself smiling and nodding. By the time she even thinks to wonder why Sofia Curtis has just asked her of all people to breakfast, the other woman has nodded, told her to meet her at the diner, and walked away.

The rest of the shift passes in a bemused haze, and it seems like only a few minutes later that she sits down across from Detective Curtis -- well, Wendy supposes that she should call her Sofia now -- and fiddles with the menu. She always orders the same thing, but it gives her nervous hands something to do. 

In contrast, Sofia seems perfectly at ease, her sideways smile firmly in place and her soft drawl flowing like liquid over Wendy as they discuss the night's cases and give their opinions on some of the latest scandals that make up the Vegas local government. 

They're about a third of the way through the meal when Wendy realizes that this is a date, or at least a precursor to one. Truthfully, she only figures it out when Sara and Greg wander over to their table from the counter to say hi and eyeball them, obviously wondering why a DNA technician and a detective are having breakfast together. It's then that Wendy catches a flicker of exasperation in Sofia's gaze and hears the barest hint of the other woman's accent thickening as she politely returns the greeting to the two CSIs. 

When Greg and Sara leave, Sofia turns back to Wendy just in time to see her duck her head to hide a smile. The elegant eyebrow raise comes out in full force. "What's so funny?" 

Wendy just smiles. Her rules are simple: never sleep with someone you know, never use endearments, and never stay the night. The last rule, of course, implies an unsaid law, one where you never invite someone over to your apartment for the night. It's much more difficult to kick someone out than to just gather your clothes and go. Still, looking across the table at Sofia, whose eyebrow is still raised in query, Wendy thinks a slip-up with her won't be as disastrous as her one-night stand with Sara turned out to be. The other woman seems like she has an appreciation for finesse and a distaste for the dramatics. 

Wendy takes a sip of her juice, still smiling, and asks, "Do you like Thai? There's this nice restaurant a few blocks over from my apartment that makes the best Thai I've ever tasted."


End file.
